Liam Smith Rates ‘Talented’ Josh Kelly But Is Ready To Expose His Flaws
Liam Smith is happy to praise Josh Kelly as a “very talented fighter”, but believes his upcoming opponent has “got a lot of flaws” he will expose.
Smith (33-4-1 20 KO) faces Kelly (15-1-1 8 KO) in a non-title super-welterweight bout on September 21 as part of the Riyadh Season show at Wembley Stadium headlined by the heavyweight showdown between IBF champion Daniel Dubois and Anthony Joshua.
Smith will fight for the first time in 12 months following his rematch defeat to British rival Chris Eubank Jr in Manchester, England. ‘Beefy’ had beaten Eubank in January 2023 in a fourth-round stoppage, although many observers feel the victory was tarnished by Smith initially hurting his opponent with his elbow.
Eubank gained his revenge nine months later with a 10th-round technical knockout, but Smith insisted after the fight that he injured his ankle and had a troubled training camp.
While a trilogy bout to determine the overall winner of their rivalry seemed to make sense, Smith will instead return to the ring against Kelly, who presents an interesting challenge. As a youngster, Kelly was viewed as a potential world champion and his eye-catching, hands-down style saw him grow a large fanbase in the UK.
His rapid rise stalled after a defeat to David Avanesyan for the European welterweight title in 2021, but Kelly has since reeled off five straight wins to get his career back on track.
“They might think they’re getting me at the right time,” Smith said. “It’s down to me to prove they’re not. And I fully believe that I will prove that.
“I think he’s a very good fighter. I think he’s a very talented fighter, a very flashy fighter. One of the fighters that’s got that natural ability, that natural flair. You can praise him. But you can also dissect him. He’s got a lot of flaws. He’s got a lot of insecurities. He lacks in many areas. He lacks in areas that I can exploit.”
Smith had a brief stint as a world champion when he held the WBO’s super-welterweight title in 2015. The Liverpool fighter lost the title in his third defense to Saul ‘Canelo’ Alvarez in 2016. Now 36 and entering his 39th professional fight, he is approaching the latter end of his career, although he is confident his greater experience in big fights will make a big difference against Kelly.
“Everyone at this level is a good fighter for six rounds. Everyone can compete,” Smith said. “But it’s the little things that make a big difference. Experience on the big stage will be one. Having to sit and bite down on your gumshield. I feel I’ve had to do that in many more fights than Josh. I feel he’s only had one massive, tough fight – and he didn’t really get through it.”
Their bout is one of several exciting match-ups on the Dubois v Joshua undercard, which includes the European middleweight title bout between champion Tyler Denny and Hamzah Sheeraz in the co-main event, and the IBF super-featherweight world title fight involving Anthony Cacace and Josh Warrington.
Also on the undercard will be Joshua Buatsi against Willy Hutchinson in a battle of light-heavyweights, and Mark Chamberlain taking on Josh Padley in a lightweight fight.
